Lauren and Tyler's Fabulous Wedding at Shady Wagon Farm!

Lauren and Tyler's wedding was one of the prettiest, sweetest weddings of my career as a wedding officiant. And all that despite their wedding weekend being one of the rainiest weekends in May. Their wedding was May 19th, 2018 at Shady Wagon Farm in New Hill. 

They waited to the last minute to call the wedding but the weather just could not be counted on to stay dry for the ceremony. Above is where the wedding would have been had it been dry enough. The gazebo stands empty this day! See other weddings at Shady Wagon Farm. 

Jeffry Surles was our amazing florist. He put this together the day before not knowing what the call would be. It was perfect for the ceremony.

So the ceremony took place on the covered terrace area where cocktail hour usually takes place after weddings at the gazebo. I loved the arc of the chairs and the beautiful natural backdrop of the woods.

Their guest book! 

Monica West, granddaughter of the owner of Shady Wagon Farm, is the on-site event manager. We are going over the logistics. This is the first time for me for the ceremony on the terrace.

Inside the barn this beautiful cake was set up. Cinda's Creative Cakes baked this beauty. Cook Shack was our caterer.

The barn is all set up for the reception. The wedding party and parents will congregate and process from here.

I paid a visit to the bridal suite to speak to Lauren and get her maid of honor to sign the license for me. Our little flower girl Penny was preoccupied with her electronics and not at all nervous about her upcoming duties.

Lauren's dress was one of the most gorgeous I've ever seen. It even had pockets and the style and color (a rose-gold-ivory)  fit her perfectly. 

At the groom's quarters the guys are all dressed and ready. Tyler's father, Jerry, was his best man and so I got him to sign the license for me.

Back at the terrace....there were so many little thoughtful details at this wedding. Lauren and Tyler love going on adventures and travel in their truck, their side-by-sides off road, bow hunt, fish and kayak.

Monica goes over the cues for the music with our DJ, Bill Freeman. I really liked Bill. He is out of Sanford and I had not met him before.

I took advantage of a quiet moment to review the ceremony script. I love Lauren and Tyler's story. They met in high school but went their separate ways to college and did not connect until they graduated and moved back to Raleigh and were ready to concentrate on their relationship.

This old wagon is perfect for displaying wedding signage and other goodies that will be added for cocktail hour.

Buck and Summerlin referred Lauren and Tyler to me and I appreciate that so much. I married them in 2014 at Fletcher Park. HERE is a link to their wedding. It was so good to see them again and to learn that they have a little daughter!

Penny and Noah, both age 4, were really taken with each other. They met for the first time at this wedding and soon became inseparable. It was so sweet! Who knew? Wonder what their future will be!

Getting the processional lined up. Tyler will escort his mom in then circle back. 

After the parents are seated, Tyler and his groomsmen and I entered and took our places up front. 

The guys are all in place. See the empty chairs? People at weddings tend to fill up from the back first! 

Now all the bridesmaids have processed in and taken their places. There were 6 attendants on each side. 

I invited the guests to stand for the bride and her father. 

Lauren's father, Henry, answered my questions then placed her hand into Tyler's hand then took his seat next to her mother, Myra.

We began the ceremony with a hearty welcome to everyone and thanked them for making the journey to be with us.

Then we had a prayer and remembered those loved ones no longer with us. 

At this point I invited the parents to stand. I asked Tyler's dad to stand with Tyler's mother Karen for the parents' blessing where we paid tribute to them and thanked them for their love and support of our couple.

Now is the time I had the great pleasure of telling our guests the story of how Lauren and Tyler met. It is a good story and filled with humor. Lauren, Tyler and I had fun putting this story together in a way no one had ever heard before.

Now you can really see how beautiful Lauren's dress is. And it has pockets! How wonderful! It was the prettiest color--a pale rose gold.

After the story they got to hear the secret paragraphs for the first time--what they love about each other! 

Of course there was more humor here too! 

Before the vows, we had a musical interlude. Cayleigh, Lauren's friend from college, sang a song in memory of Lauren's grandmother who had recently passed away. It was a bit tearful for all those who knew her, especially Lauren and her mother.

Following the song were the vows. They read them to each other from my book. Tyler stumbled over a few words adding even more humor to the wedding ceremony. At one point I cracked up and so did everyone else including Tyler and Lauren! More memories!

Of course Lauren's recitation of her vows was perfect! 

Then they exchanged rings. Tyler placed the ring on Lauren's finger and said the words after me line by line. 

Lauren did the same. 

They chose the Fisherman's Knot for their unity ceremony and it was quite appropriate given their love of the outdoors and sports. It is a very nice symbolic ritual for two people joining their lives in marriage.

Back to the center for the closing blessing. I think our ring bearer is now bored. I was amazed that the two 4-year-olds, Penny and Noah, and our 6-year-old Trey stood still in their places during the whole ceremony.

I placed my hand on theirs and pronounced them husband and wife and invited them to share their first kiss as a married couple.

They were most happy to oblige! 

There is that "after-kiss moment" when reality sinks in! 

Presenting the newlywed couple to our guests! 

Jubilant! 

Out they go followed by their wedding party and parents while the area was flipped for cocktail hour. 

The Fisherman's Knot. The more you pull on it, the stronger it gets. 

We gathered for photos after the ceremony. Thankfully it had not rained. 

Tracy Timmester was our incredible photographer. She has posted some of her photos of this wedding on Facebook here. 

Lauren and Tyler! Congratulations! What a fabulous wedding you planned and it turned out so beautifully despite inclement weather. You are a great couple and so well matched. I loved getting to know you and working with you to create your memorable ceremony--in many ways! I wish you all the best forever!!

Fairy Tale Wedding for Amy and Dwayne at Barclay Villa!

Amy and Dwayne were referred to me by one of my very favorite photographers, Craig Carpenter of Luster Studios (who took the magical photo above after the ceremony and many more you see on this blog), when he learned that they needed an officiant for their wedding March 24, 2012 at Barclay Villa.  After an initial meeting the couple and I set about creating a beautiful ceremony that was warm and welcoming to the guests, honoring of their parents, and included personalized vows and many of the reasons the couple were attracted to each other and why they wanted to marry.

If you have never been to Barclay Villa, it is Angier, NC out in the countryside and an amazing sight in contrast to the pastoral surroundings because it looks like a castle! It is a place where wonderful fairy tale weddings happen! 

We rehearsed the wedding outdoors at the lovely gazebo above and also did a run through inside the ballroom just in case the weatherman's forecast for rain came to pass, and it did, if you recall that Saturday.

The fruit trees and ornamentals were putting out their colorful blossoms and the grass was really green from all the rain we had the week prior to the wedding.

This is a beautiful pool and fountain in the side yard next to the gazebo area.

The rain was so unpredictable on the wedding day that the wisest decision was to move it inside into the great ballroom. Jeffrey Surles, our florist/wedding director/go-to man for everything, was really on the ball and had the chairs set up and tastefully trimmed with wide ivory ribbons.

The "altar"was in front of the great fireplace filled with lit pillar candles to throw off a warm glow. The beautiful floral arrangements were on gorgeous glass pedestals. In the center is the vintage table with the box into which the couple placed love letters to each other during the ceremony. The box had extra special meaning because Amy's father had crafted it many years ago for her mother to put recipes in.

Some tables were on the perimeter of the chairs ready to be placed into position after the ceremony. The menu looked fabulous!

The centerpieces matched the two pedestal flowers at the altar making elegant decorations for each table.

I got Jeffrey to pose for a picture with me. We had never done a wedding together before this one. Jeffrey owns Jeffrey's Florist in Dunn NC and has been doing weddings for 23 years. He directed the rehearsal and then directed the wedding smoothly. He was so funny during the ceremony! Of course the guests could not see him because he was behind them, but I could, and he kept making faces at the attendants to keep them smiling--a good thing! I have to remind the bridesmaids and groomsmen at the rehearsal that although all the guests may have their eyes on the bride and groom, the cameras there are taking everyone's photo so best not to get distracted, adjust your hair or dress, or look bored!

Dwayne's mother, Dawn, made this beautiful wedding cake. The blue hydrangeas on top and the blue ribbons match the sky blue color theme Amy chose.

This is Dwayne's mother being escorted by one of our groomsmen after the grandparents.

Carol, mother of the bride, was escorted in last by another groomsman. 

After the rest of the wedding party entered, the bride and her father appeared at the top of the grand staircase and proceeded down the aisle while the guests stood in the bride's honor.

I asked both sets of parents for their blessing for this union and then everyone was seated.

You can tell that Amy and Dwayne were really enjoying their ceremony. They are a cool couple and well suited for each other.

After the pronouncement of marriage came the crowning moment....the KISS!

And Amy and Dwayne step into the next chapter in their lives together!

The weather cooperated nicely after the ceremony so we could get some outdoor photos with fantastic lighting. Amy and Dwayne, may you find happiness making each other happy; may you find love loving each other!